Hoosiers decimate WIU baseball

The first of five straight games in the Hoosier state did not provide a good start for Western Illinois, as it fell 17-2 to Indiana, Wednesday afternoon at Sembower Field.

WIU sports media services

The first of five straight games in the Hoosier state did not provide a good start for Western Illinois, as it fell 17-2 to Indiana, Wednesday afternoon at Sembower Field.
It did not take long for the Leathernecks (9-27) to fall behind as the Hoosiers (21-22) put four on the board in the bottom of the first, highlighted by a three-run homer.
Things did not get much better in the second as Indiana put nine runs on the board off of seven hits, six of which were singles, giving the home squad a 13-0 advantage after two. The defense provided little support as three errors were committed in the inning, with two coming when the bases were loaded.
"We should have been out of the second inning, probably with no runs scored," said Western head coach Stan Hyman. "We booted a routine double play ground ball and after that no one stepped up to stop the bleeding. That inning made the entire day frustrating because we played well from then on."
A sac fly added run number 14 of the game for the Hoosiers in the third. This was more than enough support for Indiana starter Joey O'Gara worked five innings on the hill, not allowing a single hit.
A new pitcher in the form of Wyatt Hoff gave Western the different look it needed as Dan Johnson led off the sixth with a double and Drew Laidig followed suit with a single. A ground out and strike out left runners on second and third with two away. Singling to right center was John Koszulinski to bring in the first two runs of the game for Western.
Responding in the bottom of the sixth, the Hoosiers loaded the bags with a double, walk and single. Another walk brought home a run and a sac fly to left added another, making the score 16-2.
Indiana added a run in its last at-bat.
Taking the loss was Randon Lingle (1-2) as he tossed the first 1 2/3 innings. He had 11 runs charged to him, but only five of those were earned. Giving up just a single run each, were Eric Eden, who tossed one inning, and David Hill, who worked the final two innings of the game.
"As frustrating as today was," stated Hyman, "we did get a positive out of the game. The bullpen threw incredibly well for us over the final six innings. There wasn't any gasoline poured on the fire and that had obviously been a problem for us as of late. Today actually gave us some confidence on the fact that our bullpen stepped it up after a rocky start."
Koszulinski had a two-hit and two-RBI performance at the plate. The six total hits for the offense marked the lowest total since it collected five against Missouri on March 4.
"The injury bug has hurt us over the past four games," Hyman added. "We have been missing our starting shortstop (Lorenzo Gallaga) and left fielder (Jared Wolf) after their collision last Friday, and today we were without (Cooper) Stewart, who has filled in pretty much everywhere. Quite simply, guys are playing out of position. That is not an excuse for the lack of execution we've had. Guys have to step it up in the field. Thankfully, we should have everyone back for IPFW this weekend, so it will no longer be an issue."
The Leathernecks return to Summit League play, and Indiana, with a four-game set at IPFW this weekend. The series is set to start Saturday with an 11 a.m. (CDT) doubleheader.

Communities

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
The McDonough County Voice ~ 26 W. Side Square, Macomb, IL 61455 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service